'' (not to be confused with
Aaron Spelling 's
1978 -
81 series ''
Vega$ '') is a
Dramatic Television Series about a team of people working in a
Las Vegas Casino called "Montecito Resort and Casino", dealing with issues that arise within the working environment, be it valet parking, restaurant management or casino security. The first season began airing on
NBC in September,
2003 .
The show uses the style of camera work popularized by '''' and usually has several parallel storylines running during the show, switching between them as the show progresses.
- James Caan , (''Ed Deline''), a former CIA officer and former Director of Counter Intelligence for the CIA, a tough guy, formerly head of security, later president of operations of the "Montecito" group and is also on the Board of Members.
- Josh Duhamel , (''Danny McCoy''), a former U.S.Marine, with guerilla training and counter intelligence training, who initially was Ed Deline's apprentice, but was later promoted to head of security. The show is narrated by this character in the first few episodes. He was born and raised in Las Vegas, is a Marine , and is life-long friend and on-and-off lover of Mary Connell. The New President of Operations at the Montecito Hotel as of 2005. Later made Chief of Surveillance and Security. He was recalled into service at the end of season 1, and in Season 2 he was Awarded the Silver Star after he called in an air-strike over him and his men when they were ambushed and over run.
- Nikki Cox , (''Mary Connell''), the Special Events Director at the casino, and a Las Vegas native who has an on-and-off relationship with Danny McCoy. In the first few episodes of the show, her exact role at the Montecito is unclear; her role was rewritten in later episodes to clarify her job title and status. As of the third season she is Hotel Manager of the Montecito.
- James Lesure , (''Mike Cannon''), an engineer (with a graduate degree from MIT ) who worked as head valet for first season, but was then recruited by Ed Deline to the security department to help during Danny's military absence. He stayed on as security personnel despite being paid less than his job as a valet.
- Vanessa Marcil , (''Samantha Jane "Sam" Marquez''), the best casino host in Las Vegas. She is a ruthless business person whose sole interest is to get high rollers to play at the Montecito. She lives in a Montecito suite.
- Molly Sims , (''Delinda Deline''), Ed's daughter and Danny's love interest for the first few episodes. Subsequently becomes the manager of Mystique, the hottest restaurant/bar/club in Vegas.
- Cheryl Ladd , (''Jillian Deline''), Ed's wife.
- Marsha Thomason ( 2003 - 2005 ), (''Nessa Holt''), "The Ice Queen". The head pit boss, born in Manchester, England, thought to be the best in Las Vegas, but has a shady past due to her father's connections with Ed Deline. When the third season started, she had left Las Vegas and been given a new identity to be able to live with her father and long-lost sister.
- Lara Flynn Boyle ( 2005 ), (''Monica Mancuso''), the new owner of the Montecito; deceased. She was portrayed as a self-centered, bull-headed autocrat, although she helped Danny, Mike and Ed on some occasions. It is revealed that at age 25, she married an 83-year-old billionaire and upon his death at 93, inherited his fortune, and used it to purchase the Montecito and other casinos. She was determined to prove that she was something more than just a woman who inherited money. In an episode aired in late 2005, she died in a tragic accident in which a gust of wind blew her off the roof of the Montecito, causing her to plummet to the ground below.
''Las Vegas'' is set in the same universe as fellow NBC series ''
Crossing Jordan ''. In the season 3 episode "Double Down, Triple Threat", a case brought
Jordan Cavanaugh (
Jill Hennessy ) and Detective Woody Hoyt (
Jerry O'Connell ) to Las Vegas. Woody and Sam got very well acquainted and the long-distance relationship is still going on. O'Connell has appeared in another episode so far, and he's slated to appear in two more this season. Vanessa Marcil has also appeared as Sam in two ''Crossing Jordan'' episodes.
The show had aired at 9:00 PM EST/PST on Mondays since ''. This move is due to the fact that the NFL won't allow NBC to air ads for the show during NBC's broadcast of Sunday Night Football, which starts in September. This caused some doubts on the future of the show, as Friday nights are known for its
Low Ratings . However, thanks to ''
Las Vegas '' having ''
Deal Or No Deal '' as a lead-in, the show has shown no ill effects of the move so far.
The show has two complete seasons, both of which are available on DVD. The third season began airing Monday nights on NBC but moved to Friday nights on
March 3 ,
2006 .
NBC has picked up the show for a fourth season, airing on the 2006/2007 schedule.
- The location of the fictional Montecito has changed from season to season. Because of its similarity to three different shots.
- Other episodes show aerial shots of the Montecito that make it appear to be situated at the corner of Giles St. and Reno Ave., about half a mile from Mandalay Bay.
- During the first season of the show, many of the Montecito's suites overlooked various parts of the middle part of the Strip, placing the hotel near where the Venetian, Flamingo, or Mirage are currently, before the more consistent location at the southern end of the Strip was finalized.
- The actual set of Montecito is located at Culver Studios, in Culver City, California . These studios are where 'Gone with the Wind' was filmed. The Season 3 set of 'Las Vegas' has been said to be the biggest set for a TV show ever.
- In Season 3, Ed Deline's office appears to be in the middle of the strip, overlooking Harrah's, Caesar's Palace, the Mirage, and the Venetian, which puts the Montecito near where TI is located currently. This is inconsistent with the flyover shots of the Montecito and has Ed's office over 2 miles away. Closer examination of the window scene shows that the Mirage's marquee over their driveway has been edited to read "Montecito".
- According to an episode that originally aired in December 2005, the Montecito is located about 1.5 miles from the Wynn. It's possible that this distance is in a straight line ("as the crow flies", if you will) as opposed to a reference to actual driving distance. This distance is inconsistent with long shots that place the Montecito near the airport and Mandalay Bay, but is in line with Season 3 visual references noted above.
- Many of Mandalay Bay's interiors and exteriors (including its wave pool) have been used as Montecito exteriors, although (according to the Internet Movie Database ) interiors are now filmed in a California set that is a replica of the Mandalay Bay.
- In several episodes, the fly-through video clips inaccurately depict the movement of the camera into a casino which is clearly the Mandalay Bay - not the Montecito. Many of the interiors and exterior shots of the casino can be shown depicting Mandalay signage and names.
- The theme song is different in different countries. In Australia, UK, Netherlands etc. it is 'Let It Ride' in some countries though including USA the theme song is 'A Little Less Conversation' by Elvis.
- Critics claimed that the show wouldn't last a season. In its premier season it was the only show to be renewed by NBC.
